Surprise
by Roomie
Summary: Nozomi can count on one hand all the great birthday's she's had, but none of them can even match up to the surprise her friends plan for her.


AN: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY FAVOURITE! MY LOVE! MY LIFE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY NOZOMI!

This story started when I was talking about how one of the things I love most is the idea that Nozomi never really had a big party with friends until she met u's. One tweet became several and suddenly I had a way better story idea than originally intended.

Happy birthday to you again, Nozomi. I feel like I could say a million things here but it wouldn't even be able to convey all the feelings I have and how much I love you.

Thank you for reading, faving and commenting!

* * *

Eli scribbles the last characters she needs to, smiling satisfied as she see's the stack of papers complete. A quick glance to the clock shows they've made good time and have an extra ten minutes to kill before they need to be at practice. But Eli knows that those ten minutes are needed by the others. Today's practice is different, and she wouldn't dare let any time go to waste. She glances over to her partner, who stretches her arms out and hums contently.

"Looks like we've got some extra time before practice." She speaks Eli's thoughts and Eli smiles.

"Mhm." Eli nods in agreement.

"Should we head to the club room early?" Nozomi asks, standing up from her chair.

Eli internally panics. She needs to think of a distraction and fast. Giving a quick glance around the room, she finds a pile of documents that are meant to go to the chairwoman in the morning. With quick thinking Eli smiles and puts together the spontaneous plan.

"Well actually," Eli starts, putting on a fake frown. "We have to get those documents to the chairwoman as soon as possible, plus I wanted to talk to her about the open house we'll be having in the next month."

"Oh? Already thinking ahead Elichi~?" The violet haired girl teases and Eli gives her best apologetic smile.

"I like to plan ahead. You know that."

Nozomi giggles and takes a look at the stack of papers. She picks them up without a second thought, looking to Eli with that charming smile of hers. She steps over to the door and voices out her thoughts.

"Let's not keep the chairwoman waiting then."

Eli wants to scream, but she knows she should have assumed Nozomi would believe they would be doing it together. They did everything together after all, why would this be any different. She struggles to come up with another idea when her phone goes off, surprising the both of them. She digs into her school bag, noticing it's a call from their friend Umi. Without thinking, she picks it up fast.

"Hello?" She says, glancing over to Nozomi who waits at the door.

"P-pardon me for interrupting, Eli-Senpai." Umi begins, a nervous tone to her voice. "We're just finishing up the plans here but-"

"Oh? What is it Alisa?" Eli hopes Umi catches on to her idea.

"What? Oh, she's with you right now isn't she? I'm sorry, I forgot-"

"Don't worry about that. What's up?" Eli cuts Umi off, wanting her to get to the point.

"Erm, well, everything's going as planned but there's a couple minor details we all really weren't sure what to do for. Is there a way you can come help us out? You know her best after all." Umi asks in a quieter voice, hoping that Nozomi isn't close enough to hear them.

Eli likes the swell of pride she feels at Umi's last comment.

"Ah, of course. I do have practice today though so- Oh, you're here? Okay well, I'll come see you quickly then." Eli continues her act, satisfied that Nozomi's bought it.

"Thank you! We're on the roof right now, see you soon!"

Eli hangs up quickly, giving Nozomi another apologetic smile.

"Looks like Alisa's plans for today didn't work out, so she needs me to give her the house key." The blonde lies smoothly. "Why don't you just run those to the chairwoman while I take care of this quickly? I'll bring your bag to the club room."

"Alright Elichi." Nozomi gives her a grin. "I'll see you at the club room then."

Eli returns the grin with one of her own.

"Thanks Nozomi! You're the best!"

Eli decides not to waste any more time, grabbing Nozomi's bag and making her hasty exit.

* * *

"I'm here!" Eli announces, a bit breathless as she reaches the roof top.

"Ah! Eli-Senpai!" Kotori calls out with a grin. "Sorry to call you here, after Umi hung up we ended up figuring something out."

"Eh?" Eli resists the urge to pout. "Did I run here for nothing?"

"NOPE!" A squeaky voice comes from her right and Eli looks startled at Rin, who holds a balloon in her hands while Honoka stifles her laughter.

"Rin?! Was that you!?" She asks concerned. "What happened to your voice? Are you sick?"

"I don't knyow what you're talking about~" Rin laughs, her voice still high pitched and squeaky.

"Rin! Honoka! Did you two take that balloon and inhale the helium?!" Umi's flabbergasted voice asks.

To answer her question, Honoka grabs the balloon and inhales some helium before speaking.

"Of course not Umi-chan!" Honoka says, her voice two pitches higher.

Rin's doubled over laughing and Umi's frown deepens as Kotori and Hanayo tries to stifle their own giggles.

"Ho-No-Ka!" She scolds, stressing out the syllables of her name. "The balloons aren't for playing! They're for decoration! Weren't you two and Nico supposed to be setting up all the balloons?!"

"Hey! It was Nico's idea!" Rin argues, the helium in her voice long gone.

The group looks over to where the twin tailed girl stands, staring at them with a balloon in her hands. She looks to Maki for some sort of defense, but the younger girl avoids eye contact, not wanting to be scolded by Umi. She looks back to the angry amber eyes and speaks.

"Hey, Nozomi would find it funny."

Honoka and Rin lose it again and even Eli finds her lips twitching upwards. She sounds just like a chipmunk. Umi looks to Eli for a little help with the situation and Eli shrugs.

"S-She is right. Nozomi would laugh." Eli decides, her voice stuttering as she tries to contain her laughter. "It was only two balloons. There's still a lot more, so we'll let that slide for now."

Honoka and RIn high five each other and Eli decides to take a look at the rest of the decorations. There's a big blanket set out on the ground and on top of it are various containers packed with snacks. Next to those is a box, which Eli can assume has the birthday cake Kotori and Hanayo decided to bake for the occasion. Plastic plates and cups are neatly piled next to the packed foods and around the blanket are several more balloons weighted down with purple coloured bags. There are a few gifts wrapped as well, marked from the first and second years, even one marked from her and Nico too. Eli smiles widely, nodding and confirming the setup is perfect.

"It looks like we're ready. Who has the blindfold, I'll go meet Nozomi in the clubroom." The blonde looks between the girls and Maki digs into her pocket, pulling out a navy blue piece of cloth.

"Here," Maki says, holding it out to the older girl. "I kept it just in case someone ended up losing it."

She twirls a bit of her hair and avoids Eli's eyes.

"Thanks Maki." The blue eyed girl says with a soft smile.

"Hey! You're not going alone!" Nico objects, her voice back to its regular pitch. "We'll bring Nozomi up together, the rest of you be ready to surprise her!"

"Okay!" The ginger haired leader shouts excitedly. "We've got that covered, you guys hurry up and get Nozomi!"

Eli grabs the blindfold from Maki's hands, moving towards the rooftop entrance. Nico hands off her balloon to Hanayo, making her promise to keep the tiny hole in it held closed until she returns. Once that's done she's quick to follow Eli out the door, giving the other girls a small grin before disappearing back into the halls of the school.

* * *

The club room door opens carefully and Nozomi hums to herself as she steps inside. She's surprised to see the seats rather empty aside from Eli, who sits at the one near the end. Eli smiles warmly at her and she tilts her head a bit confused.

"Were we wrong with our times, Elichi? Are we the early ones?" She wonders out loud, glancing around to be sure they were the only ones there.

"Not quite." Eli says, and suddenly Nozomi's vision goes dark.

"Eh?!" She tries to turn her head but finds whoever is behind her is being quite forceful in tying the blindfold around her eyes.

"Perfect!" Nozomi's surprised to hear Nico's voice and she smiles.

"Ah! Of course Nicocchi is here too." The violet haired girl laughs. "But is it just us then..?"

"Everyone else is already on the roof." Nico responds in a smug voice. "You're late is all."

Nozomi wants to object until one of her hands is enveloped by something familiar. It's warm and comforting as long fingers intertwine with her own. Nozomi doesn't stop her smile as it grows and another hand takes ahold of her free one. She can feel Nico's fingers holding on tightly to her own. With both hands being held, Nozomi can do nothing but trust the two girls that begin to lead her out of the club room.

"We'll let you know when we've reached the stairs." Eli's voice comes from next to her and Nozomi only nods.

She knows exactly what's going on now. The lack of people in the club room and the blindfold covering her eyes say it all, but knowing about the surprise doesn't stop her excitement from growing, or the warmth that fills her chest. Her heart beats fast with each step, and the stinging sensation of tears refusing to form begins.

Her birthday isn't exactly her favourite day of the year. If she thinks back to the best one she's ever experienced, only two memories come to mind. The first was when she was six, and she couldn't attend school thanks to a really terrible fever. Her mother and father both stayed home from work that day, taking care of her and giving her the best birthday a sick girl could experience. The sole fact her father and mother were there to sing happy birthday together is what makes that one of the best birthdays in her memory.

The second is when Eli learnt about her birthday. It was in the first year of their friendship, and it was also the first time Eli asked to hang out with her outside of school. Together they went down to Akihabara, finding their favourite cafe for the very first time. They pooled their yen together to buy the biggest chocolate parfait the cafe had. After they were finished, Eli wished her a happy birthday shyly. Nozomi hadn't even realized Eli had remembered, and the moment she got home she cried. Not from the unhappiness of being alone again, but from the overwhelmingly happy feeling that someone else had been there to celebrate with her just for a little bit.

That feeling is back again, she realizes as Eli and Nico guide her up the stairs carefully. Nozomi can feel the blindfold dampening from her tears. She's still smiling widely as she listens to Nico and Eli's voices as they encourage her to continue. She squeezes their hands, taking each step carefully with one foot at a time. She isn't even at the top of the stairs before she decides this may just be the best birthday she's had yet.

She can hear the door open and she's pulled outside. There's no noise around her and she isn't surprised when both girls let go of her hands. The warmth of the sun on her and the chill of the light breeze is all too perfect for the moment. She feels a bit of fear when she realizes just how damp the blindfold is, but her smile still stays on her face.

"Okay Nozomi, take off the blindfold!" Nico instructs loudly.

Nozomi doesn't wait and lifts her hands up, pulling the blindfold up and wincing a bit as her eyes adjust to the bright light of the sun. She doesn't get much of a chance to recover from the light as the loud 'POP!' of confetti poppers sound and she gets showered in tiny paper pieces. Her lips curl upward even more as eight different voices chorus around her unanimously.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY NOZOMI!"

Her eyes well up with more tears as she laughs and is bombarded by two excited ginger haired girls first, who insist on wrapping their arms tightly around her and nuzzling her with affection. Nozomi can only laugh more as she throws her arms around her younger friends, pulling them closer and returning the gesture.

Not wanting to be left out, Kotori quickly joins the hug after announcing she wants to be involved too. Rin shouts to everyone, encouraging them to join in the Nozomi hug fest and one by one they do, Maki and Umi being a bit reluctant on the matter but wanting to be included nonetheless. Nozomi stands there, her tears falling and a bright smile reflecting the happiness she feels as she's held by the group of friends she cherishes more than the world itself.

"Thank you." She squeaks, her voice cracking from the raw emotions she feels.

"Eh?! Are you crying?!" Honoka asks, looking at Nozomi's face.

Everyone begins to pull away, some feeling concern while others watch with fond smiles.

"Maybe just a bit." She admits, lifting a hand to wipe away some tears. "It's hard not to. This is a wonderful surprise."

The group of girls share their own smiles before Honoka looks out to the blanket spread.

"You should thank Nico and Eli-Senpai! They're the ones who were talking about it and gave us this idea!" Kotori says with a mischievous smile.

Nozomi doesn't get a chance to look over at her peers as Honoka grabs her hand, pulling her towards the blanket in the center of the roof top."

"Let's not wait! Come on Nozomi! Open the gift from Umi-chan, Kotori-chan and I first! We had a lot of fun picking it out!"

Nozomi is soon swept away as Honoka pulls her forward to the blanket, encouraging her to open the first present. Umi's quick to follow, scolding Honoka and reminding her they have to light the candles on the cake first before anything like that can happen. While they bicker, Hanayo catches Nozomi's attention as she stands next to her, holding something behind her back. Without saying a word she shyly offers a cute little hat made by her, decorated with cute stickers and a dark purple in colour. Nozomi beams and bows her head, letting the youngest girl of the group place it on her.

"Oh! Kayo-chin that looks great! You always make the best party hats!" Rin beams excitedly, bouncing a bit in her spot.

It's not hard to see the silent question Rin wonders and Hanayo giggles lightly as she digs into a bag next to her.

"I didn't forget." She says, pulling out more party hats. "I-I only intended to make Nozomi-Senpai's at first but I got really carried away when I found stickers that fit everyone."

The attention is all on them as Hanayo passes out the party hats, making sure everyone gets the hat meant for them. Rin and Nico laugh endlessly and the giant tomato sticker on Maki's but Maki finds nothing wrong with it, despite the embarrassed blush on her cheeks. Nozomi finds herself unable to resist the urge to take out her phone and snap a quick photo of the scene.

The party continues with everyone sitting around together on the blanket. Nico, Honoka and Rin get their hands on a new balloon and don't wait to show Nozomi their high pitched funny voices. Nico's earlier comment is right and Nozomi laughs so hard her face turns red, before she takes the balloon from them and joins the chipmunk voice club. The four of them are practically crying from laughter after Honoka makes a beautiful Umi impression, even earning a few laughs from the rest of the girls (save Umi, who feels too flustered to even scold them.)

When it's time to present the cake, Eli holds it carefully as Kotori lights the candles and the group begins to sing happy birthday to her. Nozomi can feel more tears form but she smiles, taking in the moment. The colour of the blanket, the gentle breeze, the sounds of her friends beautiful voices as they all look at her. She sniffles a bit and as the song comes to an end and she closes her eyes, making a silent wish.

'I wish for more days like this to come.'

Her eyes fly open before she leans forward, blowing out the candles with a short breath. Her friends cheer and clap and Nozomi's eyes stray from the cake to the people who surround her. She watches as Maki takes the cake from Eli's hand, moving to the side to get the cake cut. Eli turns to her friend before she takes the couple steps over and sits down next to her.

Nozomi smiles at her and is slightly surprised to feel the weight of someone else leaning against her other side, and she glances over to see Nico there. Her eyes are gazing up at her and there's a smug smirk on her lips. The one Nozomi's grown quite fond of seeing in the last few weeks.

She doesn't give it a second thought as she winds her arms around them, pulling both girls closer into a small hug. No words are said as they return the gesture happily, Eli's head resting on top of Nozomi's and Nico's staying comfortable pressed against her shoulder. It's a short lived moment when Rin arrives to hand Nozomi the first slice of cake, but she finds she doesn't mind when both Eli and Nico offer to feed her the first bite.


End file.
